High Hopes & Heartbreak: Fest, Fest, Fest-y Fest!

As I mentioned in the last entry, I recently went to La Crosse for the grand 'ol Oktoberfest celebration. I've taken part in the festivities every year since I moved to La Crosse, so this was my 6th year in a row. I must confess, it was slightly difficult (or maybe odd is a better word) to attend the events now that I'm no longer a La Crosse resident. I missed not having my own bed to sleep in or being able to come and go as I pleased. However, I do have to say, it was still a great time! For those of you who are unfamiliar with Oktoberfest, it's essentially a week and a half dedicated to the celebration of German heritage. Why it starts in September is still a mystery to me, but I don't really care! The city is overtaken by brats, beer, parades, and partying. Good time, right?! I went to La Crosse with some girlfriends, and we all stayed in my friend Becca's apartment. Saturday's routine consisted of the following:

1) Get up at approximately 6:30 a.m. (hungover or not)
2) Pack up the goodies (goodies consisted of donuts, brats, chips, pickles, miscellaneous snacks, soda, various types of alcohol including beer, bloody mary's, whiskey...you get the picture)
3) Bundle up. It was cooooold.
4) Arrive to our parade spot at approximately 8 a.m.
5) Crack our first beers at approximately 8:05 a.m.
6) Play drinking games until the parade starts (at 10 a.m.)
7) Wait for the LONG parade to reach us at our spot (around 11 a.m.)
8) Dance to any and all polka music as the floats pass by.
9) Continue drinking.
10) Wait in line forever to use digusting port-a-potties.
11) Check the time and realize there's still 3 hours of parade left.
12) Take a seat for awhile to reenergize.
13) Continue drinking.
14) Shove down a brat to prevent early drunkenness.
15) Rejoice when the parade is actually over.
16) Stumble around to pack up and clean up.
17) Load the cars.
18) Walk to the bars.
19) Continue drinking the rest of the day.
20) Go to the Fest grounds (for those who were still awake).
21) Head back to the bars.
22) Pass out. I lasted the longest (1 a.m.)! :)

Okay, so that was a little more detailed than necessary, but that's literally how the day went. See some pictures below as evidence of the day. Thankfully, we got up early enough on Sunday to drive home before the exhaustion hit, but let me tell ya, I barely moved once I got home. Overall, I had a blast. Can't wait to go back for year number 7! :)